BMW invests $1.7 billion to build electric vehicles in US

BMW said on Wednesday it is going to invest $1.7 billion in building electric vehicles in the United States.

The announcement is the latest from a major automaker about plans to increase U.S. EV production.

The automaker said it was making a new $1 billion investment in its Spartanburg, South Carolina plant to plan for EV production and is set to spend $700 million on a new high-voltage battery assembly facility in nearby Woodruff, South Carolina, and to create at least 300 jobs.

“It’s the biggest single investment we’ve done so far,” said BMW CEO Oliver Zipse.

The state’s Governor Henry McMaster said at a ceremony the BMW capital investment is the largest in the history of South Carolina.

This BMW’s South Carolina plant is 30 years old, has built over 6 million vehicles, employs over 11,000 people, and has a yearly production capacity of up to 450,000 vehicles.

South Carolina awarded a $65 million grant to Spartanburg County to help with costs associated with the project.